Edward Lynch new Director of Planning & Development

The City of Newburgh issued a press release this morning announcing the appointment of Edward Lynch as the new Director of Planning and Development.  He will be taking over the post from Courtney Kain, who had served as Acting Director.

According to the press release (download here from the City of Newburgh site), Mr. Lynch comes to Newburgh after spending sixteen years with the Department of Development in New Rochelle, NY.

In New Rochelle, Lynch served under the Development Commissioner Craig King.  When the Development Commissioner position opened up following Mr. King’s leaving due to health reasons, and Mr. Lynch was not selected for the position, he tendered his resignation earlier this year.

Newburgh’s press release attributes New Rochelle’s development successes to Mr. Lynch:

The City has radically changed since then with mixed use transit oriented development downtown, including a 40 story Trump Condominium and a 1000 unit Avalon Bay residential development, a mixed use family entertainment center and significantly more commercial development. As Planning Director and Clerk to the Planning Board, Mr. Lynch obviously had a role in making a positive change.

But New Rochelle’s developments, attributed to Lynch or not, may not all be so rosy.

Trump Tower project lacks lessees; OSC audit critical

Talk of the Sound, a New Rochelle blog, reported on June 21 about a New York State Comptroller audit of the New Rochelle Industrial Development Agency due to be published this month.  The OSC audit portrays a lack of oversight.  Additionally, Talk of the Sound reports that in the case of the Trump Tower, developer Louis Capelli has failed to rent retail space:

The report goes on to state that NRIDA did not monitor the status of ongoing projects to ensure reasonable progress toward the projected benefits described in the original applications so the board cannot be sure the projects will meet their intended goals, or know when they should invoke “recapture” agreements to recover some or all of the benefits provided when projects fall short of their promised goals.

The Capelli organization is on the NRIDA agenda tomorrow, in part to seek extensions on its recapture agreement for Trump Tower which expired in December. A recapture agreement is a clause which allows the City to claim money if a project fails to meet some promise, in this case to lease the retail space at Trump Tower.

The Comptroller warns that when NRIDA officials do not properly monitor ongoing projects and invoke recapture agreements, as appropriate, there is an increased risk that other taxpayers are subsidizing the projects’ financial incentives without receiving the expected benefits to the community. This is precisely what has been occurring since 2009 with Trump Tower.

Read the full post here.

Trump Tower didn’t do much for jobs

Talk of the Sound also reports that the Trump Tower project, according to the Office of the State Comptroller, failed to create the jobs it promised:

The report notes that NRIDA projects have, overall, failed to provide promised job gains for New Rochelle. In particular, Parcel 1A (Trump Tower) was supposed to deliver 358 jobs but has, as of December 31, 2008, delivered just 98 for a net deficit of 260.

Newburgh: New Rochelle North?

Mr. Lynch is not the first New Rochelle expatriate to join the City of Newburgh.  Current Corporation Counsel Bernis Nelson served as New Rochelle Corporation Counsel for twelve years (then under the name Bernis Shapiro.)

July 8, 2010 | Newburgh Advocate | Tags: , | 1 Comment »

Employment and Education Training at the Newburgh Free Library

6.25.10: *** On Saturday, June 26, 2010, Hinchey will Sponsor Employment and Education Training Workshop in Newburgh; Presentation at Newburgh Free Library Will Provide Details on Delaware Valley Job Corps Program *** press release:

Newburgh, NY -  On Saturday, June 26, Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) and the Newburgh Free Library Job Information Center will host a workshop to provide information on free employment and education training programs available through the Delaware Valley Job Corps (DVJC).  The presentation will occur from 10:00am to 12:00pm at the Newburgh Free Library located at 124 Grand Street in Newburgh.  Since 1979, the Delaware Valley Job Corps has been providing critical job skills to 16 to 24 year olds while helping them earn a high school diploma or GED.

“The education, career training and job placement services offered by the Delaware Valley Job Corps can be life changing for young people who take advantage of this essential program,” said Hinchey. “Even though the Job Corps is located one county away from Newburgh, very few residents of the city are fully aware of all the advantages the program has to offer.  That’s why I am delighted to host this event – to ensure that those who live in the city have the information and assistance they need to successfully apply for and participate in this no-cost program, which has already benefited so many young adults.”

Participants in the program live on campus in Callicoon, New York while receiving training in trade fields including: advanced manufacturing; business technologies; carpentry; culinary arts; facilities maintenance; material handling; medical office support; security; automotive repair; construction; and, electrician support.  Despite the program’s proximity to the City of Newburgh, last year only two residents of the city took advantage of the program, which accepts nearly 400 students annually.  The vast majority of participants are from the New York City area.

In addition to job skill training, the DVJC can help participants attain a high school diploma or GED.  The program also provides free room and board, a cash stipend, basic health and medical services and job placement assistance.  The services are available free of charge to qualified applicants and are funded through the U.S. Department of Labor Job Corps program authorized under the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, which Hinchey strongly supported.

Those looking for additional details on the event should contact Hinchey’s Middletown office at (845) 344-3211.  More information on the program is also available at the DVJC website: http://delawarevalley.jobcorps.gov.  Job Corps representatives will be available to schedule application orientations to interested individuals following the presentation.

June 25, 2010 | Newburgh Advocate | Tags: | No Comments »

OC IDA dreams of taxpayer funded ride

“The thing is, you’re not really spending the money, because you have the bike.  The bike is still the value.  It’s like when I buy a coin, if I pay $100,000 for a coin, I don’t tell my wife I spent $100,000.  I still have the coin.” ––James Petro Jr., Chairman of the Orange County IDA

It was a long session today for the Orange County Industrial Development Agency Board Meeting––including a lengthy pitch at the end that was not on the printed agenda.

The last pitch was presented by Orange County Choppers Senior Vice President of Marketing John Sohigian.  Immediately prior to this, IDA Chairman Jim Petro made an announcement about an article 78 lawsuit that had been filed against the board by Chester Supervisor Steve Neuhaus (excerpt below from today’s Record article):

Neuhaus charges in court papers filed Monday that board Chairman James Petro asked a C&S vice president to “backdate a letter saying that C&S would leave Orange County” unless it got a 15-year, property-tax break the agency had approved in December.

Petro advised the board members to direct any inquiries to their attorney.

Biker dreams

Chairman Petro began with a justification for what he estimated would be a $75,000-$85,000 expense.  He used the explanation at the header of this post, and throughout the discussion returned to the phrase that the board would “not even be spending the money” because they would be getting something in return.

The chairman handed the presentation over to Mr. Sohigian, who elaborated that in addition to the custom-made Orange County Industrial Development Agency motorcycle, the board would be getting much, much more.  The building of the bike would be featured on an Orange County Choppers episode on The Learning Channel (pending TLC approval.)  Choppers patriarch Paul Teutul Sr. would grace a public presentation, for no more than two hours.  (This would also include first-class transportation for two people, perhaps in addition to the bike cost.  It was not stated by Mr. Petro whether this additional cost would be like not spending any money.)

The board was impressed. The Orange County IDA could be beamed into over 100 countries around the world.

Then Mary Ellen Rogulski, Second Vice Chairman of the board, spoke.  (Earlier in the meeting, when Mr. Petro had asked “What do you think, boys?” on an issue, she had softly protested that the board was not just boys, although Mr. Petro did not hear her.)

“I think it’s an interesting idea, but… the first thing that popped into my head was, it’s taxpayer money.  I mean, I think you can get a lot of bang for your buck, and I agree with all the business things, but I think you’re going to open yourself up to a lot of criticism.  Or you have the potential to…”

Petro said it would be considered advertising.

The OC Choppers SVP stepped in with an explanation of depreciation ideas, and that the money would somehow be returned to the IDA.

OC Choppers has already received incentives from the IDA, and earlier on the agenda they asked for a sales tax exemption on building materials as well as a PILOT for their latest proposal, the addition of a restaurant called “Roadhouse” to their OC Choppers complex in Newburgh.

The announcement regarding the lawsuit, and the Orange County Choppers discussion, is below, or can be downloaded:

April 21, 2010 | Newburgh Advocate | Tags: , , | 1 Comment »
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